All I Know Since Yesterday
by starrynightshade
Summary: Eric, Nell, and the sticky notes that changed everything. Inspired by the song "Everything Has Changed."


Nell woke up feeling warm; the kind of warm that comes from knowing that the person you're waking up next to loves you every bit as much as you love them. With a smile, she snuggled closer to Eric's side, not ready to abandon this temporary heaven just yet. The soft morning sunlight filtering through the window told her that it was sometime around 8:00 am. 18 hours she thought. It had felt like years since he had handed her the little folded-up sticky note that had changed everything.

She thought back on the previous night. The two of them had joined the rest of the team for drinks after closing the case, laughing and joking together in a corner booth at thier favorite bar. Nell, who had learned early on just how low her tolerance for alcohol was, had had a cocktail to begin with, then ordered a lemonade as the team showed no signs of leaving soon. Sam and Callen had gotten up to leave just as she sipped the last of her drink. "I should head out too." Kensi said, standing up.

"Oh, no you don't." Deeks said, snatching away the car keys she was reaching for. "I saw how many mojitos that waitress brought you, passenger's seat for you missy." Kensi rolled her eyes at him, but made no objections. As they headed for the parking lot Nell couldn't help but wonder whether the to agents would be returning to seperate houses or not. With a shake of her head she banished the thoughts, afraid of the track they had been going down.

Eric had insisted on walking her to her car and she'd decided not to deny him this act of chivalry despite the fact that she was completely capable of defending herself. "Are you hungry?" He blurted out as they approached the back of the lot.

"Starving, actually. How does penne sound? We can have Oreos for dessert."

"Sometimes I swear you and I have the same brain." He said as they arrived at her car.

"It must be quite the brain." She mused.

"Yeah, especially considering your-"

"Eric." Her warning tone reminded him of thier earlier agreement regarding the sticky notes they had exchanged.

"Right, not speaking of it."

"Right." Nell agreed. "So, my place in twenty?"

"Yeah. Drive carefully." Then before he could lose his nerve he stepped forward and gently pressed a kiss to the top of her head. Fortunately for Nell it was too poorly lit in this corner of the parking lot for him to see the blush that crept across her cheeks as she opened her car door and slipped in to the driver's wouldn't admit it, but that kiss had her smiling the whole way home

Nell was in the kitchen when he arrived at her house. She looked up from the pasta she had been stirring absentmindedly "Come in Eric!" she called before hearing the door open followed by the familiar sounds of her partner removing his shoes in her narrow entryway.

"Hello?" He called out into the silence of her apartment. "Nell, where are you?"

"In here." She said, poking her head around the corner.

"Hey, Rockstar! Sorry I took so long, I stopped to change and grab some movies." He placed an impressive stack of DVDs on the counter. "I didn't know what you felt like watching so I brought a bit of everything."

As the two fell into thier usual routine of seamlessly anticipating each other's movements, Nell couldn't help but smile at the fact that they had both assumed that dinner would be followed by a movie, despite neither of them saying anything about it. As she strained the pasta and Eric poured drinks for them, she had to fight back a small giggle at thier attire; Eric was sporting a pair of surfboard pajama pants and a distractingly snug Einstein t-shirt, while Nell had opted for sweatpants and an oversized Captain America tee. In short, they looked like the poster children for comfy nerds.

Soon Nell and Eric were sitting at the table, continuing the conversation that had begun in the kitchen. "Nobody in my family had seen them. How was I supposed to know I was expected to watch them out of order?"

"Everyone knows that episode IV comes first!"

"Then why isn't it episode I?" Nell cried. Eric just laughed and Nell was so caught up in the way it made his eyes light up that she completely forgot about her Star Wars-induced frustration.

"Alright, so I'm guessing we can take Star Wars out of the running. What do you want to watch?"

"Something light." She said decisively. "Work today was enough drama, thank you very much."

"Agreed. Lucky for us I have 'Monty Python' 'The Princess Bride' and 'Back to the Future' available for your viewing pleasure." Nell smiled. Leave it Eric to bring all of her favorite movies.

About an hour later the two found themselves curled up on the couch with a package of Oreos on the coffee table and Westley and Buttercup reuniting on the tv screen.

Nell turned her head towards Eric. "Do you believe in true love?"

A serious look crossed Eric's face as he shifted positions to face her. Nell felt his fingers trail across her forehead as he distractedly brushed her bangs away from the hazel eyes he couldn't help but get lost in. "I'm starting to." He said in a voice so low she could barely hear it. She was so astounded by his words, that she didn't notice the gravity pulling his lips to hers until they were kissing

Nell pulled back, stunned. "I-" she started, then quickly abandoned the sentence.

"Is that…alright with you?" Eric asked nervousness creeping into his voice.

"It's funny," she smiled "because I was thinking the exact same thing."

"I told you. We share one brain." Eric said before pulling her back to him. He kissed her with newfound bravery, and an intensity that conveyed everything he hadn't been able to say to her. And Nell, who was quite content to wrap her arms around his neck, seemed to be saying all those things right back.

When the unfortunate need for oxygen finally pulled them away from eachother, Nell's hair was a bit disheveled from where Eric's hand had been running through it, and Eric's glasses had been knocked off-kilter.

"I should probably…" She fumbled for an excuse to leave, hoping to give herself some time to process everything that had just happened (and maybe hide the blush that was slowly coloring her cheeks).

Nell had barely stood up before she felt Eric's arms around her waist, pulling her back to him. "Oh no you don't. You're staying right here with me Ununoctium." The sensation of his lips trailing up the curve of her neck had her resolve crumbling in mere seconds.

"You've suddenly become very persuasive, Wolfram." She let herself relax into his arms. She must have fallen asleep there because the last thing she remembered was Westly being proclaimed 'mostly dead' and a soft kiss to her temple before exhaustion finally pulled her under.

"I love you." Eric whispered,but Nell didn't hear. She didn't need to though, she already knew.

The next thing Nell was aware of was sunlight and the familiar smell of Eric.

"Hey, Nelly. You sleep okay?"

"Better than okay." She said, sitting up and stretching. "I didn't realize you were awake."

Eric picked his glasses up off the coffee table. "Yeah, you were talking in your sleep a bit."

Nell's heart skipped a beat. "What was I saying exactly."

"Not sure. You were kind of mumbling, then you started doing this really adorable sighing thing…"

That was a relief. Then another thought flashed across Nell's mind. "I have bed head, don't I?"

"Also adorable." Eric confirmed.

Nell stood up. "We'll, nonetheless I am going to go take a shower." She said, walking toward her bathroom.

"Is that an invitation?" Eric joked.

"It's whatever you want it to be." She said, before closing the door behind her.

She didn't get to see the color drain from Eric's face. "This woman is going to be the death of me."

Nell closed the door behind her. 'It's whatever you want it to be?' Her mind screamed at her. 'Are you crazy?' She took a few deep breaths and tried to slow her heart rate, which was rapidly exceeding 72 BPM.

After several minutes of debating whether or not to lock the door she finally decided that he wasn't coming in after her and left it unlocked. "Whatever happens, happens." She said under her breath, before turning on the water and depositing her clothes into the hamper.

It was undoubtedly the most stressful shower of her life, but by the time she had dried off and gotten dressed her heart rate had slowed and she was starting to think that Eric had simply gotten up and left. Sure enough, when she came back into the living room the blankets were folded up on the couch and the Oreos were put away. "Congratulations." She grumbled to herself. "You've figured out how to scare a guy off with a single sentence."

Nell headed to the kitchen, hoping some coffee might help her figure out how to deal with the situation at hand. Almost as soon as she entered the room a small smile appeared on her face. Sitting on the counter was a sticky note, covered in Eric's distinctive handwriting: Hope you had a nice shower. Went to change and pick up breakfast. Be back soon. I love you! -E

Try as she might to fight it, Nell found herself smiling like a love-sick teenager. How did he do this to her? How could one little piece of paper override all logic and sense and make her heart flutter and her lips slip into an involuntary smile? What was Eric Beale doing to her?

It was a little after 8:45 when Eric returned freshly showered and toting two coffees and a bag from her favorite bagel place. Nell, who had been reading in the living room, leapt off the couch as soon as she heard him knocking (with his foot) on the door. "One hazelnut cappuccino." He said, handing her one of the coffee cups. "And a blueberry bagel with strawberry cream cheese." He placed the bag on the counter with a flourish.

She thanked him with a quick kiss to the cheek. "It's a beautiful day, do you want to eat out on the balcony?"

The balcony was barely large enough for two chairs and a small table, but it was the perfect place for the two of them to eat and chat and enjoy the sunshine, so they picked up the coffee and bagels and slipped outside.

"So, how was your shower?" Eric asked as they settled in.

"Lonely." Nell joked, feeling more humorous about the whole thing now that it was over.

Eric stuttered out a random series of unintelligible syllables. Nell had to put him out of his misery.

"Eric. You know I was just joking right?"

"I wasn't sure." He admitted.

"Trust me," Nell said casually "when I'm actually trying to get you in the shower with me,you'll be sure." She took a long sip of her coffee. "So, what shall we do today?"

Eric, picking up on her playful mood, pretended to think for a few moments. "What we did last night was pretty fun."

"Nah, I don't really feel like watching 'The Princess Bride' again."

"I mean the other thing we did."

"Eating Oreos? I don't know, we should probably finish our breakfast first." She teased.

"I'm talking about this…" He said before leaning over and capturing her lips with his.

"Oh!" She pulled back slightly, smiling like a troublesome pixie. "You mean the making out? Yeah, I think I can squeeze some of that in to my schedule for today, and tomorrow, and the next day, and pretty much every day."

"Should I plan on a specific time or-"

"Don't worry, I'll write you a note so you don't forget."


End file.
